Steam iron



2 Shgae'esf-Sheec. 1

Spt. 15, .1959V 'Mg M. KlsTNlv-:R l STEAM IRON Filed oct. 23,1956,

A itin! FLY Sept. 1.5, 1959 M. KISTER STEAM IRON Filed Oct. 23. 1956 2Sheets-Sheerl 2 BY /wull Lum/,

M/truA )La fl/ ATTO R N EYS theftlas type and the boiler type.

STEAM IRON Merrill M. Kistner, St. Petersburg, Fla. Application'octoberz3, 1956, serial No. 617,777 z claims. (ci. .ss- 77) rThis inventionrelates to steam irons, and more particularly to a domestic steam ironof the flash type.

Heretofore steam irons have been made of two types, In flash type irons,as disclosed in my prior Patents No. 2,313,382, granted March 9, 1943,and No. 2,384,839, granted September 18, 1945, a quantity of water iscontained in a reservoir mounted over the sole-plate and the water isdelivered-v through a valve-controlled outlet to a steam generatingchamber in the sole-plate. The steam may ow fromthe steam generatingchamber through chaunels in the sole-plate to outlet or dischargeopenings iu the sole-plate to properly condition .the steam, asdisclosed and claimed in PatentrNo. 2,384,839.

In commercial steam irons at present available it is the usual practiceto provide valve-controlled means for 'the delivery of water tothe.steam 4generating chamber that is incapable of regulation, i.e., thevalve has only an .on -position and an -o position. To obtain the fulladvantages of an iron of this type, the water control should be. capableof regulation. When pressing heavier fabrics requiring highertemperatures, larger quantities of steam should be supplied.

` In addition, as the temperature fof the sole-plate is increased, theamount of steam generated should be proportionately increased to, assureproduction of -a uniform type of steam' at all temperatures. For bestoperation, a steam iron should produce steam that is not too wet, thatis, does not contain any appreciable quantity of water droplets inliquid form. Such steam causes spotting of various fabrics. On the otherhand, the steam should not be super-heated to an appreciable amount. Ifit is,

no condensation will take place in the fabric and the fabric will not beconditioned in the pressing operation in the manner that a properlyconstructed and properly used steam iron is capable of conditioningfabric.

. AIt. Will `be apparent that a certain portion of the heat supplied bythe heating-element of an iron is used for heating -the sole-plate `anda .certain proportion is used to vaporize the water supplied to thesteam generating chamberI and condition thesteam before it is deliveredto thedischaige ports.I This proportion is roughly the same at anysetting of .the thermostat. It will thus be apparent that in anironhavingonly one rate of water delivery to the steamgeneratingAchamber, the type of steam delivered will vary with diierent thermostatsetl-tings. If a properly conditioned steam is delivered with alowthermostat setting, a higher setting requiring 'a greater heat input tomaintain-the sole-plate at the higher temperature, will result insuperheating the steam 'to an extentthatthe iron does not properlycondition .the fabric, because insuicient steam` is condensed in lthefabric. Likewise, if the steam delivered is in proper condition with ahigh setting, a lower setting will result in thedeliveryof steam that istoo wet. and which will spot delicate, colored fabrics.

-. In @the present invention I provide afconstuction` in I ing 38 overthe steam generating chamber.

'which the water delivery is correlated to the temperal ture, and inwhich a single control member regulates the setting of the thermostatand the valve. The control is also capable of cutting oi the iiow ofwater, and permitting regulation of the thermostat. Thus the iron may beused as a dry iron, and the thermostat adjusted to permit temperaturevariations of the sole-plate.

Correlated regulation of the temperature setting and the water supplyis, thus, an important feature of the present invention. By properlycalibrating the iron at the time of manufacture, steam may be suppliedof uniform character regardless of the temperature setting. As stated,that should be a steam which will not deposit water on the surface oftbe fabric, and is of such temperature that some condensation occurs inthe fabric to properly condition the fabric.

lIn the accompanying drawing, I have shown one embodiment of theinvention. In this showing:

Fig. l is a vertical, longitudinal, sectional view of the iron;

Fig. 2 is a detailed, horizontal, sectional view on line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a bottom plan view of the control cam;

Fig. 4 is a detailed, vertical, sectional view on line 4-4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a similar view on line 5-5 of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 6 is a side elevation of the cam.

Certain parts of .the illustrated iron are of more or less conventionalconstruction and are included for the purpose of illustrating anoperative iron in which the parts forming the present invention havetheir environment. Thus, the iron includes a sole-plate 2, with aheating element 4 embedded in it. Water reservoir 6 is .arranged overthe sole plate, preferably covered by a shell 8. A handle 10 is mountedover the shell. The rear leg 12 of the handle may be provided with arecess for electric terminals (not shown) to be connected -to a cordconnector (not shown). A lead 16 extends from the recess to one terminalof thermostat 18. A second lead from recess 14 (not shown) and a leadfrom the thermostat (not shown) are connected to the terminals ofheating element 4.

The sole-plate maybe of the construction shown in my prior Patent No.2,384,839. As shown in that patent, fthe'heating element 4 generallyfollows the contour of the sole-plate, being in the form of a U. A steamgenerating chamber 20 is arranged in the sole-plate in the loop of theheating element, and channels 22 are connected to the steam generatingchamber. These channels convey the steam from the steam generatingchamber-to discharge ports (not shown) in the sole-plate. The thermostat18 is mounted in a well 24 in the soleplate in -the rear of a transverselrib 26 which is arranged at the rear of the steam channels or passages22.

The front lelg 28 of the handle is provided with a bore 30. This borecommunicates with an opening 32 extendf ing through the'front face ofthe leg. At its lower end, it

communicates with an opening 34 in the top of reservoir 6. The portionof the sole-plate in 'which steam generator 20 and channels 22- arearranged is provided with a cover plate 36. The cover plate is providedwith an open- A domeshaped member 40 of low heat conductive metal issecured to the cover and mounted in opening 38. An internally threadednut 42 is brazed, or otherwise mounted in a central opening in themember 40. An externally threaded valve seat member 44 is received innut 42. `As

shown, the valve seat member extends through an opening in the bottom ofthe reservoir. It is provided with a head 46 of larger diameter thanthis opening. The head engages the inside surface of -the bottom of thereservoir vand clamps the reservoir between the head 46 and. nut 42.Suitable 'gaskets may be arranged on the nut 42 and beneath head 46 toprevent leakage of water. At lthe rear of the iron, the reservoir issupported above the sole-plate by bracket 48.

Valve member 44 is provided with a central bore 50. At the bottom ofbore 50, I providea conical section 2, which forms the valve seat.l Abore 54 of smaller dameter than bore 50 is formed `beneath the valveseat. yThe v alve is formed on a valve stem 56, and consists of aconical section`58 adjacent the lower end ofthe stern. The en d 60 ofthe stem is a second conical section at a lesser angle to the axis ofthe valve stem than the angle of section 58. The valve seat 5'2 andvalve 5,8 are of -the same -angle and are in engagement with each otherwhen the valve is closed. But when the valve stem is raised, the spacebetween the lower bore 54, which is cylindrical, and the tapered endportion 60 of the valve stern increases as vthe stem is raised to`increase the amount of Water delivered to the steam generating chamber.

Valve stem 56 extends upwardly through the reservoir and bore 30 in thefront leg of the handle. Adjacent its upper end it passes through asmaller bore 62 which communicates with the top of bore 30. The upperend of the valve stem is received 4in a recess 64 in the top of thehandle. This recess is normally closed by a plate 66. The plate isremovable to permit access to the upper Vend of the valve stem. It maybe retained in place in any suitable manner. The upper end of the valvestem is threaded and receives a nut 68 and lock nut'70. Nut 68 carries aplate 72 adapted to be engaged by a valve opening member 74 to raisethe-valve stem and open the valve.

The valve is biased toward a lower o r closed position. As shown, a pairof metal washers 76 and a Vfeltvvasher 78 surround the valve stem at thejuncture of bores 30 and 62. A recess of suitable size for the receptionyof the washers is preferably formed at the upper end of bore 30. Ametal tube 80 surrounds the stem beneath the lower washer 76. Washer 82is arranged on the stern in contact with the lower end of tube 80. Aspring 84 surrounds the stem beneath the washer 82. The lower end ofthespring engages a washer 86 which is secured to the valve stem. TheWasher 86 may be secured to the stem in any suitable manner. It may bein the form of a split ring received in a groove in the valve stem. l

In the operation of the valve, spring 84 engaging washer 86 normallymoves the valve stem downwardly to retain the valve in Ithe closedposition. When valve operating lmember 74 raises the valve stem to openthe valve, as illustrated in Fig. 1, spring 84 is placed undercompression. When member 74 moves Ato a position which permits downwardmovement of the valve stem, spring 84 moves it downwardly to close, orpartially close, the valve.

The combined valve and thermostat operating mechanism includes a kingbolt 88 which extends through a sleeve 89 in the reservoir and isreceived in a threaded opening in the transverse wall 26 of thesole-plate. A Supporting plate 90 which extends over the thermostat (seeFig. l) is mounted on the king bolt. The king bolt has a head 92 justabove its threaded end. This head passes through an opening in thesupporting plate 90 and clamps the plate on the upper surface of wall26. At its rear end, plate 90 may be provided with ears 94, one of whichis shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1. These ears extend downwardly on eachside of the thermostat and are provided with at portions having openingsfor the reception of bolts 96. The bolts are received in openings in thesole-plate and give the plate 90 a three-point, anchorage, or support.

The upper end of king bolt 88 extends above the reservoir and ispositioned adjacent a portion 98 of the top of the shell 8. The end ofthe king bolt is provided with a threaded, axial opening. A threadedmember 100 is received in the threaded opening in the end of the kingbolt. This member has a head 102 intermediate itsends which engages theouter face of Shell portion i98 to clamp the shell in place. It may beprovided with a notch 104 in its upper end for the reception of a screwdriver or other tool. The handle, which is generally molded from asuitable plastic, includes a lower horizontal portion 106 which coversthe top of the shell. The portion 106 is provided with a suitableopening for access to the king bolt. This opening is normally covered bya plate 108, which may be formed of metal and which may be designed tosnap into place.

Supporting plate is provided with an opening positioned over thethermostat and the lower, enlarged end 109 of a tube 110 is mountedinthis opening. Tube 110 extends upwardly through a sleeve 112 in thereservoir to an opening in top 98 of the shell. Tube 110 is providedwith an enlargement 114 adjacent its upper end. Beyond the enlargement,it is threaded for the reception of a nut 116. A plate 118 is clamped inplace between nut 116 and the enlargement 1 14. A thermostat operatingrod 120 extends through tube'1'10. In `the 'drawing the rod is shown astwo members. The 'bottom member s preferably ceramic to reduce heatflow' and avoid metal contact with vthe thermostat element. At its-lower end the thermostat rod yengages one of the movable elements'vj122of lthe thermostat 'in the usual manner. At 'its upper end, it isengaged by one of several cams formed on a cam disc 124.

Cam disc 1,24 is arranged beneath an opening inthe lower, horizontalportion 106 of the handlev and is mounted on a' pin or shaft A126vcarried b y plate '118. The portion `106 of the handle is generallyarranged at an angle to the horizontall as shown. To arrange the disc124 substantially parallel to it', with the shaft 1,26 Vperpendicular tothem, the portion of supporting plate 118 rearwardly of tube 110 isarranged at the proper angle to dispose the shaft perpendicular Vtosurface' 106, as shown.

A threaded bushing 128 is mounted on shaft 126. Disc 1124* vis rotatablymounted .onA the shaft being clamped in place by nuts 130 and 132 whichare mounted on the bushing 128. A dial member 134 is secured to nut 130by a set screw, and projects through the opening in portion 106 of thehandle for manipulation by the user of the iron.

Disev 124 is provided with two sets of cams to be described in greaterdetail in connection with Figs. 2 to -5 of the drawings. One set of camsis concentrically ar.- ranged in alignment with thermostat rod 120 toeither lower the rod or to permit it to be raised 'by the inherentresiliency of thermostat member 122. The second vvset of cams on theperiphery of the disc engage a rocker arm `136 to depress the adjacentend of thearrn. As shown (see 2) the end 138 of arm `136 which 'isengaged by the cams may be Arounded to facilitate its movement over thecams. The mid-portion of the rocker arm is provided with an opening 140to receive the threaded member 100. In alignment with the opening, thearm is provided with curved portions 142i, substantially semicircular,which rest upon head 102 of the threaded member'and form the .pivot ofthe rocker arm. Beyond the pivot the rocker arm engages the valveactuating rod 74. As shown, this rod extends through abore l29 in thefront leg of the handle. Thus, as Ythe 'end P138 of the rocker arm isAdepressed by .one of the cams on disc 124, `the other end is raised tomove Ythe actuating member 74 and raise valve stem 56. When' the end13,8 ,is in engagement Vwith a at portion `of the surface of disc 124,spring 84 will close the valve, as heretofore described.

` Referring to Figs. 3 and 4 ofthe drawings, cams ,144, 146 and 148 onthe `periphery of the disc 1,24 provide for three valve settings todeliver regulated amounts of water to the steam `generating chamber.. Itwill 'be noted that the cams may vary in size, 144. being the largestand 148 the smallest. Thus, When cam 144 engages rocker arm 136, itdepresses 'it the maximum 301911,@ .and opens the valve to its limit, AsIeither-,of

the other cams engages the rocker arm, the valve is opened a lesseramount. Throughout the remainder of the peripheral edge 150 of the disc,it is of uniform height (see Figs. 3 and 6) and is of such height thatrocker arm 136 assumes a position that permits spring 84 to close thevalve.

In radial alignment with the cams 144-148 and over the thermostat rod 12is a second series of cams 152, 154 (see Figs. 3 and 4). These camsdepress the rod 120 varying amounts, depending on the size of the cam,to set the thermostat 18 for various cut-o temperatures as is theconventional practice. The cams 152, 154 and 156 are radially alignedwith cams 144, 146 and 148, respectively, so that the thermostat settingfor highest temperature is coupled with the valve control for thedelivery of maximum quantity of water and each lower setting is coupledto a valve control for delivery of a lesser quantity of water.

It will be noted from Fig. 3 that the cams 144, 146, 148, 152, 154 and156 are arranged on one-half of disc 124, the left half as seen in thisg'ure. I also provide for temperature regulation or control by dial 134when the iron is used as a dry iron with valve 58 closed. On the rightside of the disc 124 and concentric with cams 152, 154 and 156, Iprovide a cam 158 (see Figs. 3 and 5). 'This cam extends approximately180 and is a continuously sloping cam. As it is radially aligned withthe portion 150 of the periphery of the disc on which no cams areprovided, the spring 84 retains valve 58 closed during any setting inwhich cam 158 is in contact with the thermostat rod 120. Thus, the ironcan be set at any desired temperature by proper positioning of cam 158and used as a dry iron.

The dial 134 may be provided with suitable indicia (not shown) to permitthe user of the iron to set it for a desired temperature, either for useas a dry or steam iron. The edge of disc 124 may be provided with aseries of notches 160 corresponding to the pairs of cams 144-152,146-154 and 148-156, respectively. These notches receive a spring nger162 (see Figs. l and 2) which is secured to supporting plate 118. Whenthe thermostat is set for the highest temperature and delivery of thegreatest amount of water with thermostat rod 120 in engagement with cam152 yand rocker arm 136 in engagement with cam 144, the finger 162 is inthe lower notch 160, at 4 oclock in Fig. 3. As the dial is turned tomove the thermostat and valve controls to other settings, there is aclick each time the finger 162 enters one of the notches, notifying theuser of the iron that the parts are now arranged in the next setting.

While interconnected controls for the thermostat and valve of a steamiron have hertofore been proposed, such devices have not had means forcutting ol the water supply and permitting setting of the thermostat ata. selected temperature. Of greater importance perhaps is the provisionof an interconnected control whereby 6 l the delivery of Water iscorrelated to the temperature setting in such manner that the amount ofwater supplied for each temperature setting is such that steam in auniform condition is produced, regardless of the variation of totalinput heat units and of heat units available for producing and heatingsteam. As the total heat units available for production and heating ofsteam is increased, the amount of steam produced and heated isproportionately increased so that any given unit of water or steamreceives the same amount of heat. This permits production of steam ofuniform condition at all times and by properly Calibrating the parts ofthe iron, steam that is best suited for ironing may be produced.

The illustration of three inter-related thermostat settings and threevalve settings and means for setting the thermostat throughout atemperature range with the valve closed is merely one example of theinnumerable combinations that may be made by use of diierent cams. Theinvention is, therefore, not to be considered as limited to theillustrated arrangement.

I claim:

l. In an electric steam iron comprising a sole-plate having a steamgenerating chamber, steam delivery channels in the sole-plate and outletopenings in its lower face, a water reservoir over the sole-plate, ahandle over the reservoir, the sole-plate, reservoir and handle beingoperatively connected to each other to form a unitary structure, a valvecontrolling delivery of Water from the reservoir to the steam generatingchamber, a valve stem connected to the valve, a thermostat to controlthe temperature of the sole-plate, a thermostat control rod associatedwith the thermostat, the improvement which comprises a single controlmember consisting of a disc mounted on the exterior of the iron, twosets of concentric cams on the lower face of the disc, and means forconnecting one of said sets of cams to the valve stem and the other setof cams to the thermostat control rod to vary the valve setting and theow of water to the steam generating chamber when the thermostat settingis changed.

2. Apparatus in accordance with claim 1 in which said two sets of camsoccupy a portion of the disc, the remainder of the disc being providedwith a cam concentric with the iirst set of cams for regulation of thethermostat, and being without cams, in the circle of the second set ofcams whereby the valve 'will remain closed to permit use of the iron asa dry iron.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,411,199 Felver Nov. 19, 1946 2,441,586 Morton May 18, 1948 2,655,746McFarland et al Oct. 20, 1953 2,749,633 Seck June 12, 1956

